An injury time goal by Chelsea's Mark Stein on May 7, 1994, condemned United to the cruellest of relegations. (Photo by Jason Shillingford/Mirrorpix via Getty Images)

Sign up to FREE email alerts from YorkshireLive - Daily News

When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they’ll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. OurPrivacy Noticeexplains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time.

It was one of the most heartbreaking days in Sheffield United's recent history.

An injury-time winner by Mark Stein at Stamford Bridge on this day in 1994 not only condemned United to the most cruellest of last day relegations, it also marked the beginning of the end for one of the club's greatest ever managers.

The Dave Bassett era has been fondly remembered this week as part of the 30th anniversary celebrations of the 1989-90 promotion at Leicester.

It was an era that inspired a generation of fans and will go down as one of the greatest.

It's only now under Chris Wilder that United fans have been treated to anything like that and this current era is on course to more than surpass that.

But the way in which Bassett's time at United came to an end did not do justice to his incredible achievements at Bramall Lane.

And this defeat at Stamford Bridge was the most bitter of pills to swallow.

United had not been in the bottom three much at all that season, their fourth in the top flight, managing to always stay above the drop zone.

They entered that final day with destiny very much in their own hands. Any one of United, Everton, Ipswich and Southampton could have been relegated.

It was Everton on 41 points who occupied the final relegation place, the other three were all level pegging on 42 but having lost just once in 12 games going into this match, United were in 18th and fancied to avoid the drop.

After all, they had now become hardened to top flight survival campaigns.

Indeed, with 20 minutes remaining, United were 2-1 to the good courtesy of goals from Jostein Flo and Glyn Hodges and with Everton losing 2-1 and Ipswich goalless at Blackburn, United were well clear.

Even heading in to injury time, United were one place above the drop but when Stein ghosted in unmarked at the far post with only seconds remaining, United were down and the Blades players shell-shocked.

Read More

Related Articles

One player who remembers that day better than anyone is Jamie Hoyland and it is something that to this day, he still cannot come to terms with.

"I was sub and I was warming up with Alan Kelly," he recalled.

"We were asking all the BBC guys what was happening and all we kept getting back was 'Everton losing, Blackburn drawing, but Blackburn have scored every home game this season so don't worry they will score, blah, blah, blah.

"Every time it was just 'yeah, still losing'. Then we came off the pitch after the match and the first thing Kelly said to me as a walked off was 'we're down'. I said no we can't be, the results were good. He said 'no, they've all gone against us'.

Former Sheffield United midfielder Jamie Hoyland

"We could not believe it. It was horrible too because photographers tried to get into the dressing room and take pictures of us and the lads threw them out, it got a bit like that.

"It was a funny feeling because no one was shouting, we were all just in bewilderment because of a twist of fate we were down.

"I felt it massively because I am 100% Blade, but I looked round that dressing room and it was just absolute devastation.

"It was an unbelievable feeling because all those results just couldn't fall like they did, but they had done and we couldn't believe it. There was a quiet injustice.

"People say you get what you deserve over the course of a season, but I don't think we did actually.

"It still hurts now talking about it as much as it did back then.

"I have never watched any highlights from that day, and I never will ever watch anything from that day, never.

"It's still heartbreaking, it's still painful. I will never forget going back to Bramall Lane and there were hundreds and hundreds of fans waiting for us in the car park and I thought 'oh no, this is where we are going to get lynched', but to be fair it was really emotional.

"Fans were coming up and draping scarves around you, one fan put one round my neck, which I still have from that day, they were hugging you and it was just so emotional.

"It was a really tough one to take and just one of those days where fate played against us which, over the years at Sheffield United it seems to have done, but now with Chris in charge it is going the other way."

For Bassett, the end was in sight.

Crestfallen, he was backed to inspire a return to the Premier League but that relegation knocked the stuffing out of everyone and the fight had gone.

"That last-minute goal will live with me forever," he said after the match.

The club did not recover and despite numerous close shaves, it took until 2006 for United to taste top flight football again.

Read More

Related Articles

"It took a long, long time for Sheffield United to come back from that," Hoyland admitted.

"And it was hard for the players to get over too because when the next season comes along you're getting ready for a league you feel you shouldn't be in. The wages dropped and some of the players might have only lost £200 a week, but back then that was a lot.

"You missed out on all kinds of Premier League appearance money and bonuses, such as staying up bonuses, you're talking £20,000 each. Now it's a lot more, but back then that was a lot of money to us.

"It was a huge amount and we knew players would have to leave. I left in the October to Burnley and other players went different ways.

"Unfortunately, Harry lost his job. He had done a magnificent job getting the club where they were but I think he realised then that he didn't have it in him to bring the club back again and it needed someone else.

"And then it starts again because the new manager wants his own players and has his own style of play and the club changes on one 10-second incident and within six months it's unrecognisable."